Traditional chocolate making methods are well known and involve several basic steps carried out in a particular order. Generally, the process starts with cocoa beans harvested from pods of melon-like fruit that grow on the cacao tree. The cocoa beans are removed from the pods and placed in large heaps or piles to ferment, during which the shells of the beans harden and darken and a rich cocoa flavor develops.
Dried cocoa beans are roasted at very high temperatures and hulled to separate the shell from the inside of the bean, also called a “nib,” the part of the bean actually used to make chocolate. The nibs are milled by a grinding process that turns the nibs into a liquid called chocolate liquor.
The chocolate liquor, which is sometimes separated in advance into its constituents, cocoa butter and cocoa powder, is mixed with a sweetener, usually sugar, and in the case of milk chocolate, milk solids are also added.
The chocolate liquor is also combined with milk and sugar and is dried to a coarse, brown powder called chocolate crumb. Additional cocoa butter may be added to the chocolate crumb, after which the mixture passes through steel rollers which refine the mixture above the melting point of the cocoa butter, resulting in a chocolate powder. The chocolate powder is then conched, a process in which the chocolate powder is maintained above the fat melting temperature while mixing elements smooth out gritty particles, remove moisture and off-flavors, and develop pleasant flavors. Conching also releases fat from the chocolate powder, increasing the fat coating on the particles so that the chocolate has a proper fluidity for further processing. Additional fat is added to achieve the full formulated fat content and emulsifiers are also added to reduce viscosity and enhance fluidity of the chocolate paste. The liquid chocolate paste is tempered and then poured or deposited into a mould to produce a chocolate bar or used for enrobed products.
The melting temperature of cocoa butter and other fats sometimes used with or in place of cocoa butter in certain chocolate making processes is in the range of 29° C. to 35° C. As a result, chocolate bars and other chocolate confections cannot always be readily transported, stored or enjoyed in the summertime or in tropical climates where temperatures of unconditioned spaces typically reach or exceed the melting point of the fat in the chocolate. Even where the confections are stored or consumed in a conditioned space, if they melt during transit and then resolidify, the products may become misshapen or exhibit bloom, a condition in which the melted fat in the chocolate recrystallizes in a different structure resulting in a change in appearance or texture that can render the product unappealing.
Various attempts have been directed to trying to develop a heat stable chocolate that could better withstand conditions of elevated temperature. Efforts to date have generally involved modifying formulations by adding ingredients to the chocolate that provide heat stability. In some cases, special ingredients are added that are designed to absorb moisture during processing or after packaging. In other cases, water is incorporated directly into the chocolate during manufacture, such as using water-oil emulsions. However, chocolate products made using these kinds of additional ingredients generally have a dry, crumbly texture that is undesirable and also suffer from flavor deterioration over a shorter shelf life as a result of the high moisture content. In still other cases, high melting fats have been used, but chocolate confections having these kinds of fats are also disfavored because they tend to have a negative, waxy eating quality.
These and other drawbacks are associated with current methods of confectionery production.